Governor Daniels: Bill Cook - His Was Truly A Life Worth Emulating

Governor Presented State’s Highest Honor To Cook Posthumously

by Travis Curry SEW Editor

Carl Cook holds his daughter, Eleanor, after accepting the Sachem Award from Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels during Wednesday’s celebration of the life and legacy of Bill Cook at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington. Eleanor became impatient while waiting in the audience for her father to return to his seat, so she ran onto the stage to join him, much to the delight of the crowd. (Staff Photo) “Bill Cook did so many great things, but even more important, he did so many right things. Indiana will always revere his character and example beyond all the jobs he created and history he preserved. His was truly a life worth emulating.”

Governor Mitch Daniels presented the state’s highest honor, the 2011 Sachem, to the family of late leader, innovator, and philanthropist William A. “Bill” Cook on Wednesday evening during a celebration of Mr. Cook’s life at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington. Carl Cook accepted the award on behalf of the Cook family.

John Mellencamp, a Cook family friend and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, performed his inspirational song, “Save Some Time to Dream” solo, accompanying himself on acoustic guitar. (Staff Photo) Indiana University President Michael McRobbie served as the master of ceremonies and John Mellencamp, a Cook family friend and sometimes beneficiary of Bill Cook’s tour bus driving abilities, performed during the memorial service. Several speakers also contributed to the program by discussing Cook’s vast influence in many fields, including medicine, philanthropy and historical preservation.

McRobbie spoke about Cook’s many contributions to the university’s schools of medicine, music and education, in addition to its athletic programs and Wells Scholars program, which attracts some of the nation’s top student scholars to IU.

Governor Mitch Daniels presented the state’s highest honor, the 2011 Sachem, to the family of late leader, innovator, and philanthropist William A. “Bill” Cook on Wednesday evening during a celebration of Mr. Cook’s life at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington. (Staff Photo) He explained that although Cook was a graduate of Northwestern University, he eagerly became a friend of IU through his wife Gayle’s involvement with her alma mater. Gayle is a 1956 graduate of IU.

“He was a visionary and humanitarian with one eye on the past and another on the future,” McRobbie said. “He was, as they say of Frank Lloyd Wright, an American genius.”

Star of Indiana drum corps alumna Becky Saddlemire recalled the summers in the late 1980s and early ‘90s when Cook helped underwrite the competitive musical entourage, drove the bus to regional events and served as the source of lighthearted humor and immeasurable inspiration.

“He was a visionary and humanitarian with one eye on the past and another on the future,” Indiana University President Michael McRobbie said of the late Bill Cook. “He was, as they say of Frank Lloyd Wright, an American genius.” (Staff Photo) “We were a family,” she said. “We experienced more joy in one summer than many will ever experience in a lifetime.”

Fred Keller, director of the Dotter Institute at the Oregon Health and Science University, later noted during his address that the innovative and high quality medical devices that Cook and his companies pioneered “fundamentally changed the way medicine is conducted.” He said Cook’s leadership began with devices that improved the field of angiography but didn’t just end there, continually growing by leaps and bounds to include cutting-edge pharmaceutical delivery and countless other contributions to medical science.

Each Sachem honoree receives the specially-designed sculpture pictured above, which captures the Native American heritage of the Sachem. Sachem recipients are selected by Indiana’s governor. (Courtesy Photo) In the end, though, Cook’s son Carl probably best summed up the celebration of life, with a little help from an unexpected stage guest. During his brief remarks, his young daughter, Eleanor, broke away from her mother, Marcy, and approached the stage, asking for her daddy.

Carl smiled the smile of a proud dad as he walked over, scooped her up and held her with one arm as he spoke to the crowd of about 2,000 guests.

“The thing I will say in my unbiased opinion is that I had the best dad in the world,” Cook said. “My mother had the best husband in the world. And my daughter had the best grandfather in the world.”

Carl Cook (left) accepted the Sachem on behalf of the Cook family from Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels during Wednesday evening’s celebration of life. (Staff Photo) The program came to an end with a touching musical rendition of “The Lord’s Prayer,” sung by vocalist Lindsay Medina and accompanied on organ by dean emeritus Charles Webb, followed by a Jacob’s School of Music orchestra performance of what was said to have been one of Cook’s favorite musical pieces, the “Saint-Saens Organ Symphony.”

A slideshow of photographs from Cook’s life were projected onto a video screen high above the stage during the final two musical performances, with the last image showing Cook looking down toward his granddaughter as the pair walked away from the camera, hand-inhand.

Wednesday evening’s celebration of life for the late Bill Cook began with a stirring rendition of “When You Wish Upon A Star.” Star of Indiana drum corps alumni are pictured above as they formed a line across the stage, dressed in red, black and yellow soccer-style shirts. (Staff Photo) Sachem (Say-chum)

The Sachem is given annually to recognize a lifetime of excellence and moral virtue that has brought credit and honor to Indiana. College basketball coaching legend John Wooden, Notre Dame President Emeritus and world statesman Reverend Theodore M. Hesburgh, and civic leader Danny Danielson have been previous recipients of the honor.

Cook, who passed away in April, founded Cook Incorporated in 1963 with his wife Gayle joining him as its only employees. Under Cook’s leadership, the company became a worldwide conglomerate and a leader in medical supply innovation and development. Currently, Cook Group Incorporated is comprised of 66 companies and has manufacturing plants in the United States, Australia, Denmark, and Ireland.